You might assume that back injuries are unlikely if you have a car crash. After all, provided you wear your seat belt, your back is fully supported by the back of your seat.
Yet, many people do suffer back injuries in collisions. Here is why:
Your head is still free to move
Have you ever watched someone falling asleep in a chair? Their head tends to loll forward until they come to momentarily and jerk it backward, only to repeat the same sequence again.
Something similar can happen in a crash. The force of the impact can cause your head to jerk backward and forward repeatedly, at a much higher velocity (and therefore with much more force) than when falling asleep in a chair. Because your head sits atop your spine, that whipping forward and backward can damage the spine that runs through your back.
There are also forces from other directions that can harm your back
If you are reading this sitting in a seat, close your eyes and focus on your back for a second. Notice how it feels as you twist to the left or right. If another vehicle hits you side-on, it can cause your body to twist to one side with enough force on your back to damage the muscles and discs.
Huge numbers of office workers suffer back injuries just from sitting in their seats at their desks each day, so it stands to reason that sitting in a car seat that is hit at speed could also do harm.
Back injuries can be more challenging to prove than many other types of injury. Getting legal help to do so will be crucial because they can often devastate your life for years.
